Olympics-bound Rodriguez having a ball

July 30, 2008

Updated Aug. 21, 2013 1:17 p.m.

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BIGGER THAN LIFE: Orange County's Amy Rodriguez who after leading USC to its first NCAA title in women's soccer last December, is emerging as a key player in the U.S. attempt to defend its Olympic soccer title, seems to dwarf a soccer goal at the practice facility in Carson. MICHAEL GOULDING, THE ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER

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GOOD TEAMMATE: Orange County's Amy Rodriguez shares a laugh with some teammates during practice at the Home Depot Center practice facility. MICHAEL GOULDING, THE ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER

BIGGER THAN LIFE: Orange County's Amy Rodriguez who after leading USC to its first NCAA title in women's soccer last December, is emerging as a key player in the U.S. attempt to defend its Olympic soccer title, seems to dwarf a soccer goal at the practice facility in Carson. MICHAEL GOULDING, THE ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER

CARSON- Amy Rodriguez (bio, photos) is 21 now, three years at USC and an NCAA women's soccer title behind her, the 2008 Olympic Games in front of her. She has a water polo hunk boyfriend and a grown up credit card bill.

Still, even with the Beijing Games just days away, Rodriguez finds herself feeling like that crazed blonde 11-year-old from a decade ago, armed with a Sharpie in one hand, a soccer magazine in the other, leaning over a stadium wall wailing.

“Brandi!!! Brandi!!!”

If Rodriguez's rise from rabid autograph seeker to the Olympics didn't quite happen overnight the Lake Forest native's ascent to a place of prominence on the most famous team in women's sports was still fast enough to leave her head spinning.

“They were on my walls and now I'm with those girls that did that,” Rodriguez said referring to photos and posters of the victorious 1999 U.S. Women's World Cup team. “It happened so fast it doesn't even seem like it's a reality.”

In the last year, the former Santa Margarita High star who goes by the nickname ARod has led historically underachieving USC to its first NCAA title, earned national college player of the year honors, and she's gone from U.S. national team exile to playing a key role in Team USA's plans to defend the Olympic gold medal.

“I really haven't had the chance to really sit back and relax,” said Rodriguez, not complaining. “Everything's worked out for me. I'm going places and I'm doing things that I want to.”

Friday she toured Tiananmen Square and the Forbidden City with her teammates. Monday she was climbing the Great Wall. Next on her to-do list: the U.S. Olympic opener against old rival Norway August 6 in Qinhuangdao.

“Hopefully,” she said, “this Beijing Olympics will allow us to give U.S. soccer a new name. I think the world will be excited to see what we have to offer.”

If the U.S. is indeed able to erase the stain of Team Turmoil's 2007 Women's World Cup meltdown—which saw a dismal U.S. semifinal display against Brazil overshadowed by the Hope Solo controversy—then Rodriguez will likely have to play a significant role.

The loss of Abby Wambach, the team's leading scorer, earlier this month to a broken leg will likely force Rodriguez to the front line of the most competitive Olympic women's soccer tournament in the game's relatively brief history.

“In the international game you really need speed,” U.S. coach Pia Sundhage said. “And the way Amy's been playing and running at people has been very good.”

Rodriguez scored the only goal against Brazil in a 1-0 victory in June's Peace Cup tournament, which restored American confidence against a side that had embarrassed Team USA months earlier.

“ARod,” Sundhage said, “scored an important goal.”

She repeated the feat in a 1-0 victory against Brazil earlier this month in Colorado.

“It just happened,” Rodriguez said of her rise. “I don't want to say easily, because I put so much hard work into this. But you just never think it's going to happen to you.”

A lot of other people in the sport, however, were convinced Rodriguez was the future of American women's soccer when she was named national high school player of the year. But she surprised many of those same people when instead of enrolling at a mega-program like North Carolina, Santa Clara or Portland, she instead chose USC.

“People didn't look highly at my decision,” Rodriguez said. “They were a bit confused because usually players who want to keep growing go to growing and successful college programs. But for me, I just wanted to pick a place where I was going to be happy, and for me that was USC.”

The Trojans' early post-season exits did nothing to silence Rodriguez's critics. Neither did her decision to skip a U.S. training camp in early 2007 to recharge her batteries and focus on academics.

“I was just coming off really demanding college season,” she said. “My body was tired, my mindset just wasn't right.”

As recently as last August, then-U.S. coach Greg Ryan questioned whether Rodriguez had a future with the team and expressed doubts about her commitment to the game.

Rodriguez erased any doubts by leading the longshot Trojans to the national title. She scored both goals in USC's 2-1 upset of UCLA in the NCAA Final Four semis. Two days later, the Trojans sealed the deal with a 2-0 victory against Florida State in the tournament final. Among those watching in Texas that weekend was the newly hired Sundhage.

“Her speed stood out right away,” Sundhage said.

And Rodriguez hasn't slowed down since. Recalled to Team USA by Sundhage, Rodriguez scored a pair of goals and was named player of the match in her first game of the year.

“It's all been kind of a whirlwind,” Rodriguez said. In this blur of a season, one of the clear moments Rodriguez can recall is walking off Washington's RFK Stadium pitch in May after a 6-0 victory against Canada and seeing a mob of girls screaming her name and those of her teammates.

She said it was like looking into a mirror. “I remember thinking ‘Oh, my gosh, this is so cool,'” Rodriguez said. “I was so excited to see these kids and I was thinking one of them could be where I am today.”

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